Nicks Speculaas Cookies Food

NICK'S SPECULAAS COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander, ginger, cloves, and white pepper. Stir well to combine.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and brown sugar on medium speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Reduce to low speed, and beat in half of the flour mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
• Beat in milk; then add the remaining flour mixture. Continue to beat until a firm dough forms. Shape dough into a 1/2-inch-thick rectangle. Wrap dough in plastic, and chill it in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place racks in upper and lower third of the oven. Line two or three baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.
• Remove dough from the refrigerator. Dab mold all over with a small piece of dough; this provides a light buttery coating that will prevent sticking. Generously sprinkle mold with flour, tapping to remove any excess. Take a piece of dough that is roughly the same size as the mold, and press it with the palm of your hand into the mold. With a long thin knife, scrape away excess dough. Invert the mold over the baking sheet, and rap the far end of the mold against the pan, holding it at an angle to release the formed cookie. Use a paring knife to trim any excess dough. Reflour the mold, and repeat with remaining pieces of dough. Press together scraps of trimmed dough, and chill to prepare them for molding.
• Bake cookies until firm and golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Slide parchment paper from each baking sheet to a rack to cool. Cookies may be stored between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

DUTCH SPECULAAS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, molasses and orange zest. Combine the flour, ground almonds, cinnamon, baking powder, nutmeg, cloves, pepper, ginger and cardamom. Gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until easy to handle. , Preheat oven to 350°. On a parchment-lined surface, roll a small amount of dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Use a floured cookie stamp to press design into dough, then cut with floured 3-in. cookie cutters, leaving 1 in. between cookies. Remove excess dough and reroll scraps, if desired., Transfer parchment with dough to cookie sheet. If dough has warmed, place baking sheet in refrigerator until it firms up, about 10-15 minutes. Bake at 350° until edges are lightly browned, 8-10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

MARTHA'S SPECULAAS COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and spices.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low; beat in half the flour mixture. Beat in milk, followed by remaining flour mixture. Shape dough into a flat disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
• Line three baking sheets with parchment. Dab speculaas mold all over with a small piece of dough (this provides a light buttery coating that prevents sticking). Generously sprinkle mold with flour, tapping to remove excess. Take a piece of dough that is roughly the same size as the mold; using your palm, press into mold. Using a long, thin knife, scrape off excess dough. Invert mold over a prepared baking sheet; rap far end of the mold against the sheet, holding it at an angle to release the formed cookie. Sprinkle mold with more flour; repeat with remaining dough. Gather scraps (refrigerate if dough gets too soft) and form more cookies. Freeze at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake until firm and golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer parchment with cookies to wire racks; let cool completely.

SPECULAAS COOKIES

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, mace, white pepper, and cloves in a large bowl.
• Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in half the flour mixture. Beat in water, then remaining flour mixture. Shape into 3 disks. Pat each to a 1-inch thickness, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Dust surface and springerle mold lightly with confectioners' sugar. Roll out dough to a 1/4- to 3/8-inch thickness (deeper molds will need thicker dough). Cut a piece of dough about the size of the mold. Press mold firmly into dough, flip over, and gently roll over dough with a rolling pin. Flip over, and press onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Using a knife, trim excess dough. Gently coax dough out of mold with fingertips and onto a baking sheet. Repeat, spacing cookies 1 inch apart, and placing same-size cookies on same sheet. Freeze until firm, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place 1 sheet of cookies in oven, and immediately reduce temperature to 250. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until cookies are set and just beginning to turn light gold around edges, 55 to 65 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.

SPECULAAS - DUTCH COOKIES

Steps:

• Combine sugar and milk in a bowl.
• Stir until smooth.
• In another bowl, sift the dry ingredients and blend in the butter until the mixture is like cornmeal.
• Add the sugar and milk mixture and the almonds.
• Mix well.
• Wrap in foil, or wax paper and refrigerate overnight.
• Roll out the dough pretty thin.
• Use Christmas cookie cutters (or a windmill or other shaped cookie cutter if it isn't Christmas).
• Dust the cutter well with flour to be sure it doesn't stick.
• Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 10- 12 minutes.
• Remove and cool.

TRADITIONAL SPECULOOS COOKIES

Steps:

• Beat the brown sugar, butter, egg yolks, cream, vanilla and lemon zest in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or use an electric mixer) until it's pale and fluffy, 5-6 minutes. Add the almond/hazelnut flour and mix until combined. In a separate bowl combine the flour, baker's ammonia, salt and spices. While beating, gradually add this flour mixture to the wet mixture. (If not using a stand mixer use a wooden spoon while you can and then knead with your hands.) If the dough is too dry/crumbly add a little extra egg yolk as needed.Form the dough into a ball, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let it rest in a cool place (NOT the fridge or it will become brittle) for at least 5 hours or overnight.
• Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of about 4mm or just under 1/4 inch. You can simply cut them into small rectangles (like Biscoff cookies) or you can use molds, cookie stamps, a molded rolling pin or any cookie cutters of your choice to shape the speculoos (see blog post pictures for instructions on how to use molds and molded rolling pins). If using molds be sure to lightly flour them first to prevent sticking. Cut out the cookies and place them on a non-stick baking sheet. Chill the cookies for at least one hour before baking.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the speculoos on the middle rack for 10-12 minutes or until nicely browned and caramelized. Let the speculoos cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.Store them in an airtight container. It is best to wait at least a week before eaten them to allow the flavors to develop. Will keep in an airtight container in a cool place for several weeks. Enjoy by the speculoos by themselves or dipped in your favorite hot beverage.